


a shadow on me all of the time

by ficmuse



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Ben Solo is a Mess, Canon Divergence, F/M, Grey Rey, Hair Braiding, I reject your canon and substitute my own, Inappropriate Use of the Force, Let's rewrite TROS, Rey Palpatine, Space Opera, War and Peace, happy ending guaranteed, pew pew, prince of alderaan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-01-30
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:35:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22484251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ficmuse/pseuds/ficmuse
Summary: Snoke’s dying revelation about Rey’s true heritage changes everything. She and Kylo Ren unite as one, determined to broker peace between the Resistance and the First Order. The odds are stacked against them, as their current reality forces them to confront the past at every turn. Can they attain their dream of creating a new world order- or will an even greater threat destroy everything they have worked to build?
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey
Comments: 9
Kudos: 22





	a shadow on me all of the time

_Together we can take it to the end of the line  
Your love is like a shadow on me all of the time (all of the time)  
I don't know what to do and I'm always in the dark  
We're living in a powder keg and giving off sparks_  
-Bonnie Tyler, Total Eclipse of the Heart

The crimson throne room, vast and cold, was where Rey was going to die. The battle had been lost before it had begun. All of her hopes and dreams for the future were coming to an end. She stared into the eyes of the man that she loved. 

Time had ceased to have all meaning. There was only pain and disappointment and fury. In the end, the fury was what saved her. 

The Force bond between them flared to life, for what would be the last time. It seemed a waste of energy, to open a connection between people who were face-to-face, an arm’s length from each other. 

She had come so far, to be by Ben’s side, because she believed in him- she loved him, despite herself.

_(you love me?)_

Ben's voice echoed in her mind. That was a new Force ability, and a little unhelpful, given the reality of their current situation. What use is a new gift from the Force, when you are on the brink of certain death?

_(Rey. You love me?)_

_(yes I love you of I course I love you idiot)_

It was a real shame that she did since he was about to slaughter her in cold blood.

_(you don’t understand)_

_(we’re out of time for explanations Ben)_

Behind Rey, the voice of a villain calmly recited the cold facts: that the man she loved would ignite his lightsaber and murder her where she knelt before him. Except…

Ben couldn’t do it. She felt him through the bond and knew that he would never hurt her. He loved her, just as she loved him. But if he loved her, why had he brought her here to die?

_(well things aren’t really going according to plan here Rey)_

Snoke’s angry voice screamed inside Rey's head. _You will die for your disobedience and weakness, Kylo Ren._ He was in Ben’s mind. With their Force bond activated, she could see and feel the corruption that Snoke had unleashed upon Ben.

Snoke’s evil curled throughout Ben’s mind like smoke. The Sith Lord’s venom had poisoned Ben Solo for all these years- and created Kylo Ren.

"And now I will tear you apart, my unworthy apprentice," said Snoke, and Ben’s eyes bulged. He clawed at his throat, gasping for air.

Memories flashed through Ben’s mind and then to Rey’s. She saw Snoke’s evil presence twisted through Ben’s life- turning him away from everything good and right. Snoke had lied- he hadn’t created the bond between them. The Force had linked them together, and Snoke had been blind to it. Ben’s connection to Rey, she saw, was the only untainted element in his existence. The only light in a life of darkness.

The flow of images in Rey’s thoughts began to slow and sputter. 

Ben struggled but was unable to break the clutch of the Sith lord. 

She was going to lose him.

Rey rose to her feet and turned towards Snoke. His face was distorted with sick pleasure, relishing the sensation as he crushed the life out of the man she loved.

The Force bond went quiet. She was losing Ben. He was dying. 

Snoke let out a sharp cackle, riding a high of power and pain.

Rage, incandescent and shining, filled her. Her body was unable to contain it; she was burning, like tinder in a fire. She lost control of her fury, and blue, jagged lightning radiated from her body, engulfing Snoke.

“I won’t let you take him away from me!” she roared.

“You are the rotten fruit of a dead lineage,” he spat at her. “The last Palpatine is no match for my mighty-“

Rey felt a sudden surge in her power. Ben, adding his strength to hers. He moved to her side and took her hand in his. His fingers linked through hers.

“You will both d-“ Snoke shrieked as his body began to crack, blue lines radiating across his twisted face. His eyes widened with surprise, and he exploded, reduced to steaming pieces of meat.

She heard Ben’s deep sigh of relief when Snoke died. The Force bond between them blazed for a moment in blue light. She saw the patches of tainted darkness in his mind fade away. The Force bond closed, and they were alone again.

But they weren’t alone; they were alive and hand-in-hand. For one glorious moment, their eyes met, and they both smiled, and Rey felt the thrill, the jubilation, of their shared victory. 

In the blink of an eye, the Praetorian Guard advanced upon them, weapons drawn. Rey’s rage had not yet been quenched; she threw lightning at the first guard, and it skipped to the next. Each soldier was engulfed in blue flames until the linked chain of their writhing enemies exploded in a rain of blood and flesh.

They were alone now, surrounded by carnage. Blue lightning still flickered around Rey’s fingers as she turned towards Ben. His face was spattered with blood.

The rage that had fueled Rey's power sputtered and died, now that the threat had ended. “Who am I?” Rey asked Ben, her voice cracking. 

“The other half of my soul.” Ben’s voice snapped with confidence and authority. All hesitation and doubt were gone, burned out of his being with Snoke’s death. 

She reached for him; he bent down to her. His lips met hers in a searing embrace. 

Ben wrapped her in his arms and held her close. She could feel his fingers twisting in her hair, and she felt him pull out the cord that held the strands from her face. He cradled the back of her head in his hand and his mouth opened to hers. The kiss deepened, and she sighed. She savored the taste of him, the feel of his heat, his heart hammering against hers.

He broke the kiss and whispered against her ear, “Will you stay with me, now?” The vulnerability in his voice pierced her heart. 

Rey had reached the crossroads of her life. She felt it with every breath. Her heart ached, and her eyes filled with tears.

“Rey. Will you be mine?” Ben’s eyes searched hers. Overhead, a massive explosion shook the chamber. 

During the intense fight with Snoke, she had forgotten about the war being waged outside. “We have to end the battle,” she said.

He looked at her, his brow furrowed. “Rey.”

Her impatience bubbled over. “Ben, we need to end this now. Your mother is out there. My friends. Please, just call an end to this.”

His face turned as set and cold as stone. “Tell me. Will you stay with me this time or turn your back on me again?”

“We don’t have time for this. There’s a battle being waged-”

Kylo waved a hand, and time stopped. The world around them shivered in place, blue crystalline shadows that shuddered with the ugly truth of distorted reality. “We have all the time you need.” 

The intensity of his gaze made her look away, suddenly shy. “Ben-“

He shook his head. “Ben Solo is dead, crushed under the weight of everyone’s expectations, destroyed by Snoke’s machinations. Kylo Ren was just his puppet; I see that now. But right now, I need to be Kylo Ren so that we can survive this.”

She’d seen his memories; she understood what he meant. He was perched on a precipice, and he needed her to keep his footing. Kylo Ren needed her to lead him back to the light, to repair the damage that Snoke’s influence had unleased. 

“Rule with me,” Kylo said, and it didn’t sound like a question. It was a command. “I need you, Rey.”

Kylo’s eyes held the past, the present. Their future. There was no uncertainty in his gaze, and Rey knew why.

“You’ve seen this moment, haven’t you? You know what I’m going to say.”

He nodded. “This moment, this is when it changes. I need to hear it.” His eyes softened and his lip trembled. “You know what you need to say. Say it out loud.”

Rey knew the words he needs to hear, the key that would unlock their future. “I love you.”

The Force flared all around them, between them. They both gasped, feeling infinite power, as their minds fully opened and accepted each other. They had a moment of perfect and total communion, the Force bond flaring into a complete joining, and as quickly as it had happened, it was over.

“We are one. We will always be one. You will rule by my side and we will change the shape of the galaxy. It is our destiny.” Kylo unfastened the cloak at his neck and settled it around her shoulders.

It was heavy and warm, and the chill that Rey had felt since she walked into this room disappeared.

“I gift you with all I own,” Ben murmured and kissed her temple. His hands skimmed up to her hair. With quick movements, he gently pulled pieces of her hair into a small braid that trailed around her face.

“What are you doing?” Rey asked him, puzzled.

His face was so intense, as he weaved her hair into a tight pattern.

“I claim you as my own.” He released her braid and his thumb traced her jaw. “I will never be parted from you, not even in death.” He took her mouth in a passionate kiss that left her throbbing between her legs, craving more. 

He tucked his lightsaber into her belt and placed hers in his. “And so, our future begins. Let us close out the past, together.”

He put his arm around her, and they strode from the throne room, perfectly in sync, leaving nothing behind but a dead tyrant, a pile of smoking corpses, and falling embers frozen in time.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr. My Reylo blog is @handtoucheshand.


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